So the clock ticks ever closer to the season of goodwill and as a self confessed lover of Christmas, a word of warning for fellow football fans hoping to receive that special something in their Christmas stocking or under the tree. As the years have gone by, I have sometimes received presents based purely on the fact that I am a football fan. Despite who I support, occasionally, a gift would arrive that often stated by it’s appearance, was bought, simply because it was related no matter how tenuously, to football.

What you have to be aware of, is the danger of the gift arriving that can ruin your day. Some of you may in your infancy as football fans, some may be lifelong football fans but all of us should be afraid of the present that can deflate your spirits quicker than discovering your mums new boyfriend is Sven Goran-Erikkson. Here are the 5 worst things that football fans need to be aware of on Christmas Day.

1. THE BOOK ABOUT YOUR RIVALS

This one is a very common spoiler of Christmas Day celebrations for football fans the world over. More often than not more people support less successful sides than the ones that win the trophies. Unfortunately, the more success a side has, the more books tend to be written about them. This has seen myself recieve books about Arsenal and Chelsea in the past as well as a book about Real Madrid. All from well meaning relatives, but sadly wide of the mark. Of course, the benefit of this situation is that you can recycle such presents to either a local charity shop or another friend the following Christmas. Be aware and make sure even Great Aunt Betty knows who you support.

2. THE FOOTBALLERS AUTOBIOGRAPHY

A truly chilling sight to meet those hung over and reddened eyes on Christmas Morning is the footballers autobiography. Why? To put it simply 95% of them are utterly dreadful. The autobiography has probably been the most saturated genre in football writing since the Premiership became the global money making machine it is today and it shows. No one still playing has anything vaguely interesting to say, or as in Ashley Cole’s case, they say something so deluded it makes them a hate figure. What you hope for is one of the truly great ones, such as Tony Cascarino’s, Brian Clough’s, Roy Keane’s, Paul Gascoigne’s or Bobby Robson’s. Make sure you let them know!

3. THE FOOTBALL RELATED CLOTHING ITEM

Here in the UK, there are numerous opportunities for you to receive some of the most ghastly clothing made in the world, simply because it either will have the word football or soccer on it or a picture of a football. Most of these items will be awful as a simple football attired item, but in this day and age, the wonders of technology have given us a greater horror. The musical tie/socks/boxer shorts/hat in a muzak style of sound. This may sound something like the theme to Match of the Day, but after 73 plays before the Doctor Who special has even started, can cause a reaction similarly to that of Jack Nicholson to a winter as a caretaker. Keep it replica kit safe!

4. THE WEIRD FOOTBALL RELATED ITEM

Sometimes, people make the strangest football connected items that really does make you think if someone was on serious medication, needed serious medication or simply had a night out with John Belushi in 1980 and never got over it. For dreadful items, this for me takes the biscuit. Who in there right mind pitches that at a meeting. “Tell you what guys, these are going to be flying off the shelves”. The comments alone are worth viewing the item for. Staggering.

5. THE OH YOU LIKE FOOTBALL SO YOU MUST LIKE ALL SPORT PRESENT

Now I don’t know about you, but I love football, I love NFL, Tennis and Golf. I really enjoy Darts, no don’t laugh. Unfortunately most other sports leave me cold. Be aware, some people think if you like one sport, you like them all. This can lead to all sorts of unrelated crap getting wrapped up and sent to you under the guise of a thoughtful present. Here in England this usual involves two games hardly any other country plays or gives two hoots about, Cricket and Rugby. These include books about such sports, DVD’s, even tickets. Please use point one’s guide to recycling.

So there you have it, 5 key points to watch out for this Christmas but later this week I’ll be looking at some things you really should stick on your Christmas list and what will wow the football fan. Season’s greetings!

Please leave me your feedback, especially about awful football related Christmas presents below and you can follow me at http://twitter.com/paulbestall

Every country has its historic matches that will never be forgotten and England’s rich World Cup history provides many celebrated games. Say phrases like “1966 World Cup”, “hand of God”, “David Beckham free kick”, “Gazza”, or “losing to penalties” to an England fan and watch his eyes light up with pleasure or grief thinking about the matches that define the England National Team.

Sometimes these great, historic games are not the matches that you remember (for no other reason than maybe not being alive at the time). You may take these famous matches into historical perspective but you actually remember the games that, for some reason, speak to you in some way or other. It could be as simple as a goal that you find stunning, the debut of a player you particularly like, or your club players carrying the side. It could just be that the game represents to you a particular time in history for the team.

Here are five England matches (and an honorable mention) I find particularly memorable.  While not necessarily a list of the best England matches I’ve seen, these are the ones I will never forget.

• Against Scotland in 1996

What I most remember about this match is Gazza’s flick over the Scottish defense that was followed by the famous celebration in this two goal win.

• Against Argentina in 1998

I fondly remember this match for a very young Michael Owen dribbling past the Argentine defense to score an inspired goal. Not so fondly remembered is the David Beckham red card and loss to penalties.

• Against Germany in 2001

If beating Germany wasn’t enough, this game featured three of my club’s players score five goals against the opposition.

• Against Greece in 2001

The amazing David Beckham spot kick merits this match an inclusion on my list of memorable matches.

• Against Argentina in 2005

I’ll never forget this back-and-forth match that resulted in a win over Argentina. By now, you can probably guess who my favorite England player was in the past.

• Honorable Mention – Against Croatia in 2010.

To relate this back to the approaching World Cup we’re all anticipating, I find this recent match memorable because it displays the goal scoring ability of the current crop of players.

It seems like only yesterday when Italia 1990 took place, probably the first World Cup that could honestly begin to claim it was a global spectacle. As if by magic, the Cameroon side that qualified for the 14th World Cup were able to explode all over the world and show people that African international football had arrived. It wasn’t that previous qualifiers from Africa hadn’t given a good account of themselves, Algeria in 1982 were cheated out of qualifying for the 2nd round. They’d just not been consistent throughout a tournament.

1990 changed all that almost immediately. The World Cup traditionally opened with the defending champions playing in the first game, and Italia 90 was no different. It was expected to be a turkey shoot, as Argentina faced Cameroon on June 8th in Turin. After 90 minutes, African football had come of age thanks to Omam-Biyik’s 67th minute header condemned the holders to a 1-0 defeat. It was a result that made football fans the world over sit up and take notice.

Other than the win, the game featured quite possibly one of my favourite ever tackles in a game of football. Suddenly, anything was possible and Cameroon would have an adventure that almost reached fairytale proportions. It would be the story of the 1990 World Cup and especially thanks to one player it would live on in the memory long after the finals had drawn to a close. Cameroon’s fantastic run was built on a foundation of pace, strength and the lethal finishing of a 38 year old journey man striker called Roger Milla.

Milla had been a striker of average talents that had plied his trade in the French First Division throughout the 1980′s but by 1989 had moved the the French island of Réunion to take up a post of player coach for St.Piere. His French club career had seen him play for Monaco, St. Etienne and Bastia amongst others, but had retired from international football. The country managed to talk him back for a 3rd World Cup and he was instrumental in the achievements throughout the World Cup.

After dispatching Argentina, Cameroon beat a well fancied Romanian side 2-1, with Milla getting both goals before a final defeat came against the Soviet Union 4-0. It mattered not, they finished top of the group, even with a negative goal difference, but found Colombia in the next round. To all intents and purposes, the dream would surely run out of steam against another South American side, but after 90 minutes the games was level at 0-0. Milla had come on as a substitute and they were hanging on.

Suddenly in the second half of extra time, Milla came alive, scoring 2 goals in 2 minutes, the second one that will haunt Rene Higuita, Colombia’s iconic goalkeeper for the rest of his life. He came sprinting from his goal to try and play sweeper, dallied and Milla robbed him, ran on and slotted the ball in to the empty net. 2-0, game over, the legend of the Indominatable Lions was made in those minutes. Colombia stole a late goal but to no avail, they were out and Cameroon became the first African country to make the quarter finals.

The next match will live long in my memory, mostly because of how much England struggled, despite taking the lead through David Platt. Cameroon’s movement and pace had unsettled England to the point that they were 2-1 down, once again with Milla taking centre stage. Coming on as a substitute he set the first with a beautiful pass and was brought down for a penalty, which was converted to put Cameroon 2-1.

England were facing the exit but with 7 minutes remaining Gascoigne played Lineker in and a rash tackle gave a penalty away. Lineker, ever the predator, scored and in to extra time we went. It was then that the Cameroonian legs began to tire and the English pushed on for a winner. Both sides had been involved in extra-time tussles, but Cameroon seemed to be feeling the effects more. A carbon copy pass from Lineker once again invited a rash challenge and once again the result was the same.

It was an effort too much for the Lions to try and pull level and England’s experience told as the clock ticked down to the final whistle. They were out, but to a man, every fan in the ground and stood and applauded the Cameroon team as they waved Italia 90 goodbye on a lap of honour. They had come so far, achieved so much and won so many admirers for the passionate way they played the game. African football grew in stature that month in 1990 and all football fans around the world should be thankful for Roger Milla and the Cameroon team that won Italia 90′s hearts.

The definitive book of the 1990 World Cup was All Played Out, the magnificent work by author Pete Davies who beautifully captured the spirit of the tournament and summed up the magical journey that England undertook against all odds and how they tragically fell at the last hurdle on the dreaded penalty kicks.

But the book is much more than that, which is perhaps one of the reasons why the work has been adapted into a new documentary film that will air for one night only, this Tuesday May 11th, in cinemas across England. Whether you’re able to go see the film or not, be sure to watch the trailer above which gives you a glimpse into what the film is about. And shares with you what Bobby Robson’s words were to Paul Gascoigne after that fateful semi-final exit against West Germany.

• A Lion who’s seen better times.
• Will it all end in tears?

Yet again, Paul Gascoigne has been in the English media headlines in recent weeks for all the wrong reasons. The 42 year old midfield maestro of yesteryear who looks the worst part of 60 was arrested twice in a week, once for public disorder and then again for being drunk in charge of a vehicle.

Gascoigne’s misadventures on the wrong side of the law are nothing new to football supporters. Gazza seems to be arrested at least once or twice a year for the last five or six years straight. The former Newcastle United, Spurs and Lazio play maker spoke of his problems battling alcoholism, bulimia, obsessive-compulsive disorder and even bipolar disorder in his 2006 autobiography, Gazza: My Story.

We all have personal and health problems, but it was Gazza’s inability to occupy himself when not playing football that led to his increasing health problems. The lack of purpose in his life when he wasn’t playing football and after his retirement led to his heavy drinking and off the field problems that have been so widely publicized and scrutinized by the media and the public.

Gascoigne’s declining physical and mental health have been paramount in his numerous arrests over the years. Gazza’s rap sheet is by now a mile long, and I cringe a little each time I hear his name mentioned in the news or see his name in the headline of articles. I wonder in fear what will happen next if someone doesn’t step in and help him, even if it is for the third, fourth, or fifth time. It’s unfortunately been proven that Gazza doesn’t possess the abilities to manage himself, his health, his drinking or his wild behavior. I don’t know much about his immediate family situation, whether they’ve stepped in to help or not, but why can’t the FA intervene into the life of one of their brightest sons?

The question comes down to responsibility. Whose is it? Gazza’s failed at being responsible for himself, and the help he’s received in recent months and years obviously hasn’t been enough or been precisely what he’s needed to achieve a full recovery. Football fans have seen this story unfold before. George Best, the incredible talent that he was, suffered from alcoholism and ultimately succumbed to his own personal demons and died way before he should have. A sad tragedy that the football community hopes won’t repeat itself anytime soon.

This tragic story comes down to what Gascoigne wants for himself. No one can force this once great footballer to do what he doesn’t want to. But I believe he genuinely wants to be involved in football in some capacity, it’s what he loves and what he knows in life. This one simplistic reason is why I think the FA need to step in and help Gazza so he doesn’t harm himself any more than he already has.

Stoke City’s Matthew Etherington’s gambling addiction is no different that Gazza’s alcohol addiction. Addiction comes in all forms and Etherington seems to, for now, have it under wraps thanks to help that came from his club during a pivotal moment in his addiction struggles. Then a West Ham player in 2008, the club supported him and helped him through a time when Etherington said he was receiving death threats due to his £800,000 debts. The club loaned him £300,000 in advance to help payoff the mounting debt in return that Etherington would enter counseling for his addiction. Still struggling to pay the debts, Etherington insists he’s been clean of his gambling problem for some time.

Etherington continues to turn in consistent performances for Stoke City and Stoke boss Tony Pulis has even tipped him for an England spot in the near future. Why can’t this turn around and recovery from addiction be achieved by Gascoigne? Do the FA or former clubs of Gascoigne have any responsibility to help him and see him to a full recovery? I think the answer is Yes.

Growing up in America in the 80′s and 90′s when English football wasn’t readily available like it is now, I wasn’t able to experience the brilliance of Gazza during his best years for England at World Cup ’90 and Euro ’96. But I’m observant and smart enough to know about a little known site called YouTube and that Paul Gasciogne is a player with incredible football talent and someone that comes along maybe once a generation. How long will the football community sit beside and allow this once great footballer to damage himself?

For most Sunderland fans, there is nothing finer than taking a player from Newcastle and making him one of your own. When the Mackems broke the transfer record in 1948 by paying £20,500 to bring Shackleton to Roker Park, they captured one of English football’s most mercurial talents. Shackleton was a mould breaker, a player who refused to conform and loved to entertain the public.

Born in Bradford in 1922, Shackleton ended up as a trainee at Arsenal but was freed, aged 17 as the Second World War started. Managing to avoid being drafted, he signed a contract on Christmas Day with Bradford Park Avenue. At the time, it was illegal to sign a contract on Christmas Day, but Shackleton reminisced about breaking the law when he signed. “I didn’t care and neither did the club. It was all I wanted to do”

Park Avenue, whilst now stuck in the Unibond League, were a steady lower league side at the time and throughout the war Shackleton used to play twice a day. He’d turn out for B.P.A in the morning and then appear as a guest for Bradford City in the afternoons. He hit 171 goals during 6 seasons of war time football and he became an idol at Park Avenue. At the end of the war, Shackleton was highly sought after and the club turned down several offers but they eventually received an offer they couldn’t turn down from Newcastle United and Len made his way to St James Park for £13,000.

As debut’s go, Shackleton’s first game for Newcastle couldn’t have gone much better as he scored six and set up four in a 13-0 romp against Newport County. Yet, Shackleton didn’t enjoy his time at the Geordies at all. Asked later in his career about his feelings towards them he summed it up as “I’m not biased when it comes to Newcastle United, I don’t care who beats them”

In February 1948, Shackleton made the move which would make him a legend and joined Sunderland. The club was earning a reputation for spending big money, becoming known as the Bank of England club throughout the early 50′s, but Shackleton perhaps never received the credit he deserved as Sunderland simply couldn’t win a trophy that they’re investment suggested they should. Adored by the fans and management at Sunderland, he was not popular with power brokers of English football.

You see, Shackleton was known as the “Clown Prince of Football”; he loved to entertain the crowd and bamboozle any opponent that came up against him. Scoring the simply goal was not enough, he needed to entertain. He would dribble once, twice, even three times past a defender just to show he was completely in control of the ball. Famously against Arsenal, he dribbled his way into the box, stood on the ball and looked at an imaginary watch on his arm. As the defender came flying in, he simply rolled the ball to one side and continued dribbling around the mystified Arsenal defenders.

Against Sheffield United, he once held up play by smashing the ball in to a snowdrift to waste time and his most famous trick was to play a one two with the corner flag, leaving many a full back on their behinds, cursing their luck to marking him. Yet, for his popularity with the general public, he was despised by the F.A. The England manager of the time, Walter Winterbottom once remarked “I wish Len would come half way to meet the needs of the team, there wouldn’t be anyone to touch him.”

It is clear to anyone who knew about football in the late 40′s and early 50′s that for Shackleton to only ever have received 5 caps for England was a disgrace, but the man himself didn’t care. “England play at Wembley Stadium, not the London Palladium.” In 1955, he published his controversial autobiography that included the now legendary chapter entitled “The Average Director’s Knowledge of Football”. It was a blank page.

A niggling ankle injury sustained in the 1951-52 season eventually caught up with Shackleton and he was forced to retire after the first game of the 1957-58 season. In retirement, Shackleton continued to be a thorn in the football authorities side, comparing footballers in the 1940′s and 50′s as modern day slaves and as a journalist for both the Daily Express and the Sunday People continued to criticise the suits he felt ruined the sheer joy of football.

The Prince passed away in 2000, in Grange upon Sands after suffering a heart attack and his legacy still continues to bring joy to the legions of fans that saw him at his pomp in the 1940′s and 50′s. A true maverick of the English game, he claimed that Paul Gascoigne was the only player he’d ever pay to see as he was the only one who almost as talented as he was.

• The world record transfer in 1948 of £20,500 when he joined Sunderland
• 309 goals in 612 games
• 1 goal in 5 England Appearances
• First footballer to publish his autobiography

This Sunday, Paul Gascoigne appeared on Match of the Day 2 as a pundit/guest. This was part of a triumvirate of televisual appearances. One in which perhaps we have seen a refreshing look a man we have all been seriously worried about, a man all who love football deeply care about and one we are worried that could be another George Best happening in front of our eyes.

However, this whistle stop tour of television Gazza has recently been on was largely positive, which gives the football world hope that the lost boy of English football has finally been found. Furthermore Newcastle fans finally have something to be happy about through these dark times.

Paul Gascoigne, the former England, Newcastle, Spurs, Lazio, Rangers, Everton and Middlesbrough legend was in trouble. This time last year he was on a self destruct mission, indulging in addictions to drugs, drink and prescription medications.  This great of the game was blighted by severe depression which ultimately manifested itself in psychotic episodes of paranoia, removal from reality and OCD.

This culminated in multiple apparent suicide attempts and twice being sectioned under the mental health act. The front pages of British tabloids were covered by pictures of Gazza being led out of hotels in Gateshead by police and paramedics. Some of the more bizarre stories about Gazza’s tormented lifestyle consisted of talking to robotic parrots, an addiction to the Nintendo Wii and repeatedly phoning his dad asking for help in chess matches v American presidents.

This all reached a climax in the hardest documentary ever to watch, Surviving Gazza broadcast in January on the UK’s channel 4. The documentary focused on Gazza’s relationship with his ex wife Cheryl and his step children Bianca and Mason also his son Regan. On the impact he had on their lives in the final scenes; under the advice of an apparent “expert” they were told to ditch Gazza out of their lives completely. One of the hardest scenes in it was Paul’s young son Regan saying he wished his dad was dead for the hurt he had brought to his family.

From that to his appearance on Sunday night, the difference is clear as day, sure Gazza looks skeletal at times and maybe is not all there occasionally but he appears to be in his best state for years. He is more cogent than ever and alleges he has been clean for fifteen months and sober for four. No longer is the former BBC sports personality of the year 1990 going on crazy drunken binges with Iron Maiden which were surely killing the England great.

In his appearance on Soccer AM, Gazza was on absolute top form which was brilliant to see. They bigged up his ego which sure might have seemed mad but was very heart warming. They included his goal, possibly the greatest ever scored against my nation in their flagship showboat sequence (highlights of the best bits of footballing skill that week).

The Birmingham fans in the studio repeatedly chanted the Geordie footballers name. In asking Gazza about his former team mates, they brought out the best in the man. He was very intelligent, clever and witty in his talk and produced the greatest responses to that regular line of Soccer AM questioning. This was apparently all thanks to the sporting chance clinic of Tony Adams which appears to have done a great job here.

It was brilliant to see this great of the game getting some sort of public rehabilitation. As he even said himself on his Match of the Day appearance it was to build up confidence. Confidence is vital for anyone in the public spotlight as much as himself and can arguably have just as great an effect on an individual as advice from doctors.

It’s also brilliant that the man is on his way to getting grounded, in his own words his schedule consists of training every morning then eating rice and pasta at his “mams”. Maybe living with his mother was what the man needed, the only person who can maybe fully forgive him for indiscretions and heal this tortured soul.

In being back home he is away from such tomfoolery of the past, possibly harder to associate with idiot drinking buddies like Chris Evans and Danny Baker. The man is never going to live a normal life certainly, but he is on his way to something stable and healthy. Let’s hope the Gascoigne line will get redemption, as there is new hope for that and the revival of Newcastle.

That hope comes in the form of one Cameron Gascoigne, aged seven, nephew of Paul who recently signed a contract with Newcastle United after scoring an incredible magpie (the new term for 22 goals in a single match) in just 30 minutes in a junior game. Redemption for the Gascoigne name, and who knows Geordie’s maybe in a few years this young lad could be your third messiah.

From an extravagant Russian billionaire to the post-peak stripper living paycheck to paycheck, the economic crisis has affected all.  At some point, the recession will even reach the insular world of Premier League footballers.  To help these normally fiscally free dandies adjust to these more responsible times, here are four helpful tips.

The Pint: Despite the scarring examples provided by Tony Adams and Paul Gascoigne, drinking remains an essential part of footballing culture.  We wouldn’t dare suggest that Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard adopt the more professional, moderate lifestyles of players on the continent.  Surely, commitment to fitness has nothing to do with winning a World Cup.  However, these lads could imbibe in a more cost-conscious manner.  Sugary mixed drinks in England are overpriced and awful, and paying £250 for a bottle of champagne is sodden idiocy.  Either option is also effeminate.  The simple beer is smooth, cost-effective and masculine.  It lets you know when to stop.

The Base Model Car: A Bentley Continental GT is a lovely car.  It’s cool.  Just as cool as the one you bought last year and equally as awesome as the four identical ones your teammates have sitting in the same parking lot.  Your super-car may be extra cool, with customized rims and your playing number and child’s or ex-girlfriend’s name worked into the trim.  But, really who are you trying to impress?  Women love luxury.  Show up in a modest Mercedes or BMW.  It keeps the class and lessens the load on the wallet.  If you have anything more impressive in the automobile department, women wonder what deficiency for which you need to overcompensate.

Monogamy: Women are expensive.  Whether you date one, marry one, meet one in a club, visit one on the sly after training or pay your way into pleasure, it is going to be a good time.  Having a healthy one-woman relationship minimizes wining and dining expenses.  There’s only one set of birthday and Valentine’s Day gifts to buy.  Another added benefit of flying with one, is you don’t get caught.  There’s no emotional baggage.  Financially, you don’t have to buy expensive gifts to make up for it.  You don’t lose half your money in a messy divorce.  When the footballing days are over, and you are a grizzled old coot with jowls spouting aimless clichés on television, you have someone to take care of you.

Security: You have a large amount of money and no responsibilities.  You want to buy some crazy jewelry and an insane home theater set.  You don’t, however, want to buy two of everything.  Have a security detail.  Maybe you don’t want to pay one full time, but have someone guarding your house, particularly in Liverpool or Manchester, when you are playing away in Europe.  It may seem an unnecessary expense now, but it’s cozy not to have to worry about your loved ones being robbed at knifepoint.